The present invention generally relates to vehicle guidance systems by means of optical gradients and automated vehicles or toys that can track and follow an optical gradient line. The present invention further relates to vehicle guidance systems that can detect, analyze and respond to lines of various colors.
Numerous automated vehicles, utilizing a variety of guidance means, are known. U.S. Pat. No. 5,622,236 discloses a guidance system for a self-propelled vehicle which tracks a luminescent guidance line drawn along a predetermined traveling path on a floor surface. U.S. Pat. No. 4,947,094 discloses drawing a guidance system on a ceiling. U.S. Pat. No. 3,669,209 discloses a vehicle guidance system in which a vehicle having a magnetic sensing device is guided in a desired path in relation to lines of constant magnetic field strength which are set up by a system of guide members. U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,825 discloses a guidance system using magnetic markers in the floor surface itself. U.S. Pat. No. 6,629,028 discloses an optical guidance system utilizing a computer-controlled mounted laser to direct mobile bodies.
A need exists for improvement in optical guidance systems for vehicles that are simple, and thus economical to incorporate into a children's toy, allow for smooth steering and variation in speed, and provide a means to allow users to create, construct, and alter their own guidance tracks. These, and other needs, are addressed by one or more aspects of the present invention.